Murrumbidgee hospitals perform well in latest healthcare quarterly report

MLHD Executive Director Medical Services, Professor Len Bruce thanked staff for their hard work throughout the period, which saw an increase in the number of patients receiving planned surgery, and strong results in several emergency department measures.

“Our results are a testament to the hard work of our highly skilled workforce, and I commend our teams for their dedication to providing the best possible care to our patients,” Professor Bruce said.

There were 1,922 planned surgeries performed in our hospitals from January to March 2025, an increase of 3.2 per cent on the same quarter in 2024.

More than three-quarters of these surgeries (78.1 per cent) were performed on time. All (100 per cent) urgent planned surgeries were performed on time.

Professor Bruce said it was pleasing to see an increase in the number of planned surgeries in MLHD.

“Our teams work hard to ensure patients receive their planned surgery in a timely manner,” Professor Bruce said.

Professor Bruce encouraged patients who feel their condition may have deteriorated while waiting for their surgery to contact their treating doctor who can review their condition and place them in a higher urgency category if appropriate.

“The time to surgery for each patient is individually determined based on a clinical assessment of their condition by their specialist, who then gives the patient an urgency category,” he said.

MLHD’s emergency departments (EDs) have continued to provide highly quality care to patients across the District in timeframes well above the state average.

During the January to March 2025 quarter, there were 39,525 attendances to the District’s EDs, with 1,185 fewer attendances, or a decrease of 2.9 per cent, compared with the same quarter in 2024.

There were 3,877 presentations to EDs by patients with imminently life-threatening conditions (triage category 2), an increase of 135 patients, or 3.6 per cent, compared to the same period in 2024.

Non-urgent presentations (triage category 5) increased to 5,580, a difference of 98 presentations, or 1.8 per cent, compared to the same period in 2024.

Despite the high demand in our EDs, more than eight in 10 patients (80.6 per cent) started their treatment on time, well above the state average (67 per cent) and the second-best result in the state.

NSW Health has worked with the Australian College of Emergency Medicine to introduce new Hospital Access Targets for local health districts and specialty health networks relating to the time from arrival to leaving the ED. These new targets are designed to support safe patient care and reflect the complexity of patient needs, and the diverse pathways patients may take once they present to an ED.

This is the first Healthcare Quarterly report to reflect the new targets. Due to the change in reporting, the results for the new Hospital Access Targets cannot be compared to the previous January – March 2024 quarter.

More than eight in 10 patients (80.3 per cent) were able to leave the ED within four hours of arriving, well above the state average (66.7 per cent).

The District had 7,581 arrivals by ambulance to our EDs, 39 more than the same period in 2024. More than eight in 10 patients (82.9 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time.

“All patients are seen and triaged on arrival at the ED and, as always, the most seriously unwell patients are treated first,” Professor Bruce said.

“During busy times, people with less urgent conditions can experience longer wait times when there are large numbers of seriously unwell patients being prioritised for emergency care.”

MLHD continues to invest in strategies to improve the timeliness for patients presenting to EDs. The Rapid Access Clinic (RAC) at Wagga Wagga Base Hospital is providing an alternative destination for assessment and treatment for many patients who would previously have presented to the emergency department. Suitable patients are referred to the RAC by the emergency department, Healthdirect, GPs, pharmacies and NSW Ambulance.

We continue to remind the community to support us by saving emergency departments and ambulances for saving lives. If an illness or injury is not serious or life-threatening, we encourage people to call Healthdirect on 1800 022 222 for trusted health advice, 24-hours a day, 7 days a week.

INDIVIDUAL HOSPITALS

Wagga Wagga Base Hospital

There were 12,063 emergency department attendances at Wagga Wagga Base Hospital in the January to March 2025 quarter, with 64 fewer attendances than the same period in 2024 (12,127).

Increases were seen in more serious presentations with emergency (triage category 2) presentations up by 263 presentations or 22.3 per cent, compared to the same quarter in 2024.

The majority of patients (62 per cent) started their treatment on time, which is in line with the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (61.7 per cent). More than half of patients (58.6 per cent) left the ED within four hours of arrival.

There were 3,359 arrivals by ambulance during the quarter, an increase of 83 arrivals or 2.5 per cent, compared to the same quarter in 2024.

From January – March, 1,522 planned surgeries were performed, an increase of 86 surgeries or 6 per cent, compared to the same period in 2024, and the highest result in the state for hospitals of a similar size.

All (100 per cent) urgent planned surgeries were performed on time.

There were 305 babies born at Wagga Wagga Base Hospital during the quarter, just one baby less than for the same period last year.

Griffith Base Hospital

There were 5,399 emergency department attendances at Griffith Base Hospital in the January to March 2025 quarter.

There were 663 emergency presentations (triage category 2), an increase of 49 presentations, or 8 per cent, compared with the same quarter last year.

There were 2,098 urgent presentations (triage category 3), an increase of 216 presentations or 11.5 per cent, compared with the same period in 2024.

There were 2,034 patients presenting in the semi urgent category (triage category 4), and 266 patients in the non-urgent category (triage category 5), with both measures reflecting decreases compared with the same period in 2024.

The majority of patients (75.5 per cent) started their treatment on time, which was better than the state average of 72 per cent for hospitals of a similar size.

The majority of patients (81.9 per cent) were able to leave the ED within four hours, better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (70.2 per cent).

The vast majority of patients (93.7 per cent) arriving by ambulance were transferred from ambulance to ED staff within the 30-minute benchmark time, better than the average result for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (91.4 per cent).

During the quarter there were 289 planned surgeries performed at Griffith Base Hospital, an increase of 20 surgeries, or 7.4 per cent, compared with the same period in 2024 with almost all planned surgeries (96.6 per cent) performed on time. All urgent planned surgeries (100 per cent) were performed on time.

Throughout the quarter, 126 babies were born at Griffith Base Hospital.

Deniliquin Health Service

There were 2,546 emergency department attendances at Deniliquin Health Service in the first quarter of 2025, 96 fewer attendances, or a decrease of 3.6 per cent, compared to the same period in 2024.

Almost all patients (96.2 per cent) started treatment on time, which is the best result for hospitals of a similar size in NSW, and significantly better than the average for comparable hospitals in NSW (79 per cent).

Almost nine in 10 patients (89.5 per cent) were able to leave the ED within four hours of arriving, better than the average for hospitals of a similar size in NSW (83.3 per cent).

There were 310 arrivals by ambulance, an increase of 30 presentations or 10.7 per cent compared to the same period last year. Almost all patients (96.1 per cent) were transferred from ambulance to the ED within the 30-minute benchmark.

At Deniliquin Health Service there were 29 planned surgeries performed in the January to March 2025 quarter, and all urgent planned surgeries (100 per cent) were performed on time.

During the quarter at Deniliquin Health Service 12 babies were born.

Young Health Service

There were 2,248 emergency department attendances at Young Health Service in the January to March 2025 quarter, 323 fewer presentations or a decrease of 12.6 per cent, compared to the same period in 2024.

The majority of patients (84.6 per cent) started treatment on time, and almost all (93.4 per cent) were able to leave the ED within four hours, the best result in the state for hospitals of a similar size.

Young Health Service performed 50 planned surgeries during the quarter and 29 babies were born.